Liquid ant bait pack with tear-away tab

ABSTRACT

A liquid ant bait pack having a primary bait well and a plurality of feeding reservoirs for holding liquid bait is provided in which the walls of the feeding reservoirs as well as the primary bait well are sloped to facilitate ant access to the liquid bait held therein while reducing the risk of the ants falling into the bait and drowning. Ant access is further facilitated by dry platform areas positioned between the reservoirs. The inclusion of multiple feeding reservoirs, the bait well and the dry platform areas provides an increased area over which ants can simultaneously access the bait. The entrance to the bait pack is sealed during manufacture and then readily opened by the consumer using a tear-off tab that can removed without the need for any tools.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.16/655,842 filed Oct. 17, 2019, which claims benefit to U.S. applicationSer. No. 14/992,823, filed Jan. 11, 2016.

BACKGROUND

The present invention is related to the field of pest control and, moreparticularly, to plastic liquid insect bait assemblies, especially forants.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

Numerous types of bait stations have been developed for attracting andkilling insects, through provision of a supply of bait, normally onethat is doped with an insecticide, and facilitating the application ofthe station at a location where it will attract and kill insects throughingestion of the edible bait. More specifically, various types of baitstations containing liquid insecticide have been available for some timefor attracting roaches, ants, and other type of pests.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,532,696 (“the '696 patent”) discloses a holder forliquid insect bait having an entrance cavity and a plurality ofreservoirs that hold the bait. At least one of the sides of each of thereservoirs is perpendicular to the bottom of the reservoir which cancreate the risk that, in attempting to reach the liquid bait, the antsmay fall into the liquid bait and drown rather than eating the bait andreturning to their nest where they can spread the poison to the rest ofthe colony. In addition, the insect bait holder shown in the '696 patentrequires that the user have scissors or other sharp utensil to open theholder prior to use.

Therefore, a need exists for an ant or insect bait trap that overcomesthe foregoing disadvantages.

SUMMARY

In view of the foregoing, the present invention is directed to a liquidinsect or ant bait pack having a primary bait well, a plurality of antfeeding reservoirs with sloped walls, and a tear-off tab for opening thebait pack. The end of the bait pack having the primary bait well isreferred to herein as the back of the bait pack, while the tear-off tabis provided at the opposite end or the front of the pack. Therefore,“front” portions of the feeding reservoirs and well are those portionsnearest the tear-off tab while “rear” portions of these structures arethose portions nearest the bait well. In addition, the invention is mostoften described hereinafter as an “ant bait pack”; however, it isunderstood that other small insect pests may also be advantageouslydrawn to the bait pack. Therefore, use of the term “ant bait pack”herein is not intended to limit the present invention to use of the baitpack for ants only but is intended to encompass any small pest insect.

The plurality of ant feeding reservoirs are in liquid communication withthe primary bait well via a plurality of channels. The head of eachchannel is formed in the front side wall of the primary bait well,referred to herein as the outflow side wall of the primary bait well.The mouth of each channel opposite the outflow side wall of the primarybait well opens into a respective ant feeding reservoir. The outflowside wall of the primary bait well is sloped and the depth of thechannels is less than the depth of the primary bait well and also lessthan the depth of the ant feeding reservoirs so that, when the bait packis full and placed on a level surface, bottom side down, liquid bait inthe bait pack flows through the channels between the primary bait welland the feeding reservoirs to reach a level of equilibrium. The slope ofthe ant feeding reservoir walls is steep enough to retain the desiredamount of bait in the reservoirs and yet gentle enough to enable ants toclimb both down and up the walls to access the bait and then exit thebait pack with little risk of falling into the liquid held in thereservoirs and drowning. In addition, the reservoirs are laterallyseparated from one another by substantially flat or “dry” platform areasfrom which ants may access the bait without even venturing into thereservoirs when the bait level is high enough. Dry areas could also beprovided around the outer edges of the reservoirs for the same purpose.Having a plurality of ant feeding reservoirs, each of which has slopedwalls that can be accessed easily by the ants, as well as dry platformareas between and/or around the reservoirs, increases the number of antsthat are able to feed simultaneously as compared with bait stationshaving a single bait well or fewer reservoirs, as well as bait stationswith walls that are perpendicular or nearly perpendicular with respectto the bottom of the bait station and/or the underlying support surface.Finally, the tear-off tab enables the user to easily open the bait packwithout the need for any tools. Accordingly, it is an object of thepresent invention to provide an ant bait pack that is able to contain alarge quantity of liquid bait in both a primary well and a plurality offeeding reservoirs in liquid communication with the primary well.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an ant bait packin accordance with the preceding object in which the bait pack includesa plurality of individual readily accessible feeding reservoirs toprovide a greater area over which ants can access the liquid bait andincreasing the number of ants that can feed simultaneously.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an ant bait packin accordance with the preceding objects in which the walls of thereservoirs are sloped at an angle that facilitates the ease with whichants can access the liquid bait without falling into the bait-holdingreservoirs and then exit the bait pack to return to their colony.

Yet a further object of the present invention is to provide an ant baitpack in accordance with the preceding objects in which the reservoirsare in liquid communication with the primary bait well via channelshaving sloped walls and a shallower depth than both the well and thereservoirs so that the supply of bait remains in the primary well andthe reservoirs as the amount of bait is reduced through consumption.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an ant bait packin accordance with the preceding objects in which the channels allowbait to flow between the primary bait well and the reservoirs.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide an antbait pack in accordance with the preceding objects in which thereservoirs are laterally separated from one another and/or surrounded bydry platform areas that enable ants to access the liquid bait withouteven entering the reservoirs when the liquid level is sufficiently high,i.e, when the level of bait in the bait pack constitutes a full ornearly full level, as when the trap is initially opened for use.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an ant bait packin accordance with the preceding objects in which the bottom surfaces ofthe reservoirs and the primary bait well are on the same orsubstantially the same plane so that, when the bait pack is on a levelhorizontal surface, the height of the upper surface of the liquid baitis substantially the same in both the bait well and the reservoirs.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an ant baitpack in accordance with the preceding objects in which the bait pack hasa tear-off tab that enables the consumer to open the bait pack easilywithout the need for any tools.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an ant baitpack in accordance with the preceding objects in which the bait pack,when prefilled and sealed, fully contains the bait within the sealedbait pack package, the bait being exposed only when the pack is readiedfor usage by removal of the tear-off tab to create an entryway for theants.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide an ant baitpack in accordance with the preceding objects that has a low profile soas to fit in areas with limited accessibility to any children, pets, orthe like.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an ant baitpack in accordance with the preceding objects that is easy to use andthat can be easily disposed of, along with all the ants containedtherein, after the bait has been consumed.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an ant bait packin accordance with the preceding objects that remains sealed until useand that can, when opened, remain attractive and palatable as a bait foran extended period of time due to its compactness and preferably smallentrance opening, while protecting the consumer as well as children andpests from possible contact with the bait both before and during use ofthe bait pack. Yet another object of the present invention is to providean ant bait pack in accordance with the preceding objects that, due toits structural configuration which makes it resistant to the inflow ofrain water during common showers, may be used both indoors or outdoors.

Yet a further object of the present invention is to provide an ant baitpack in accordance with the preceding objects that is not complex instructure and which can be manufactured at low cost and efficiently usedand then disposed of by the consumer.

These together with other objects and advantages which will becomesubsequently apparent reside in the details of construction andoperation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, whereinlike numerals refer to like parts throughout.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the bottom side of a preferredembodiment of a liquid ant bait pack in accordance with the presentinvention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the bottom side of the bait pack shown in FIG.1 .

FIG. 3 is a side view of the bait pack shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 .

FIG. 4 is a front-end view of the bait pack shown in FIGS. 1-3 .

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the top side of the bait pack shown inFIGS. 1-4 after the tear-off tab has been removed.

FIG. 6 is a top perspective view of the bottom half of the bait packshown in FIGS. 1-5 .

FIG. 7 is a side view of the bottom half of the bait pack shown in FIG.6 .

FIG. 8 is a bottom view of the bottom half of the bait pack shown inFIG. 6 .

FIG. 9 is a sectional view taken along line A-A of the bait pack bottomhalf shown in FIG. 8 .

FIG. 10 is a sectional view taken along line B-B of the bait pack bottomhalf shown in FIG. 8 .

FIG. 11 is a sectional view taken along line C-C of the bait pack bottomhalf shown in FIG. 8 .

FIG. 12 is a sectional view taken along line D-D of the bait pack bottomhalf shown in FIG. 8 .

FIG. 13 shows a consumer removing the tear-off tab of the preferred baitpack embodiment of the present invention in preparation for use.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENT(S)

Although only one preferred embodiment of the invention is explained indetail, it is to be understood that the embodiment is given by way ofillustration only. It is not intended that the invention be limited inits scope to the details of construction and arrangement of componentsset forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings.Also, in describing the preferred embodiments, specific terminology willbe resorted to for the sake of clarity. It is to be understood that eachspecific term includes all technical equivalents which operate in asimilar manner to accomplish a similar purpose.

As shown in FIGS. 1-5 , the present invention is directed to an insector ant bait pack having a preferred embodiment generally designated byreference numeral 10. The ant bait pack 10 includes a primary bait well12, a plurality of ant feeding reservoirs generally designated byreference numeral 14, and a tear-off tab 16 for opening the bait pack10. The plurality of ant feeding reservoirs 14 are in liquidcommunication with the primary bait well 12 via a plurality of channelsgenerally designated by reference numeral 18.

The bait pack 10 is preferably formed of a single sheet of a polymerfilm folded over to create an upper half 11 and a lower half 13 as shownin FIGS. 3-5 . The upper and lower halves 11, 13 have flanges 72, 74,respectively, that are brought into abutment with one another and sealedduring manufacture in a manner like that described in the ′696 patent.

The primary bait well 12, the feeding reservoirs 14 and the channels 18are molded into the lower or bottom half 13. The primary bait well 12 isgenerally rectangular with a closed back wall 20 and an opposite outflowfront wall 22, joined by two side walls 24 that extend in a generallylongitudinal or “upstream-downstream” direction between the closed backwall and the outflow front wall. As used herein, “downstream” is used torefer to an element having a spacial placement such that the elementreceives an inflow of liquid bait from an “upstream” element that isnearer to the primary well 12 at the back of the bait pack. The primarywell 12 represents the source of the liquid bait “flow” and thereforeconstitutes the head of the “stream” at the back end of the bait pack.While the terminology of “upstream”, “downstream” and “flow” suggests anactive or ongoing movement of the bait in a single direction, this isnot actually the case, in most instances, as the liquid bait can move“upstream” or “downstream” in response to elevation of the front end ofthe bait pack or elevation of the back end of the pack, respectively.Therefore, the “flow” and “stream” terminology is used for clarity ofstructural description and not to describe an actual or fixed flowdynamic or movement of the liquid bait.

An upstream end or head of each channel 18 is formed in the outflowfront wall 22 of the primary bait well. The downstream end or mouth ofeach channel opposite the outflow front wall 22 of the primary bait well12 opens into a respective ant feeding reservoir 14 downstream of theprimary bait well.

Each feeding reservoir 14 is generally rectangular having an input sideinto which the mouth of the channel opens. According to the embodimentshown herein in FIGS. 1-13 , there are four ant feeding reservoirsformed as an upstream pair, generally designated by reference numeral30, and a downstream pair, generally designated by reference numeral 32.In this two-pair configuration, each channel has an upstream portion 18a and a downstream portion 18 b. The upstream portion 18 a of eachchannel 18 extends from the primary bait well 12 to the input side orback wall 34 of a respective one of the first pair of ant feedingreservoirs 30. The downstream portion 18 b of each channel 18 extendsfrom an outlet or front wall 36 of the respective one of the first pairof ant feeding reservoirs 30 to the input or back side wall 38 of arespective one of the second pair of ant feeding reservoirs 32 located“downstream” of the first ant feeding reservoirs 30. Hence, the upstreampair of reservoirs 30 is in liquid communication with the downstreampair of reservoirs 32 through respective channel downstream portions 18b. The downstream or front wall 40 of the second or downstream pair ofreservoirs 32 is nearest the tear-away tab 16 at the front of the baitpack 10. The depth of the bait storage well 12 is between about 5 mm andabout 7 mm, and preferably about 6 mm (0.236″). When the pack is filledwith liquid bait, the fluid height is below an upper edge formed by theflange 74 of the bottom half 13. According to the preferred embodiment,the bottom surfaces of the reservoirs and the primary bait well are onthe same or substantially the same plane so that the upper surface orheight level of the liquid bait when the bait pack is on a levelhorizontal surface is substantially the same in the reservoirs and thebait well. This equilibrium from the rear to the front of the bait packincreases the size of the feeding area and ensures that ants can accessthe bait in the reservoirs as easily as in the bait well, and viceversa.

The bottom surface 42 of the channel 18 is higher than the bottomsurface 44 of the bait storage well 12, i.e., the channel is not as deepas the well, with the depth of the channel being between about 3.4 mmand about 3.9 mm, and preferably about 3.7 mm (0.146″). The depth of thechannels 18 is also less than the depth of the ant feeding reservoirswhich have approximately the same depth as the primary well so that, asjust noted, when the bait pack is positioned for use, preferablyhorizontally, the channels allow the liquid bait to flow into and beheld in the primary well 12 and the feeding reservoirs 14 at asubstantially uniform level when equilibrium is reached. As the bait isconsumed and the bait level in the reservoirs and bait well falls belowthe bottom of the channels, fluid in the channels will flow into thereservoirs and bait well. In this way, the bait held in the channelswhen the bait pack is full is, as the bait is consumed and its leveldrops, “fed” into the reservoirs and bait well, emptying the channelsand retaining the remaining bait in the reservoirs and well. This isadvantageous because the reservoirs and bait well provide a largeraccess area for multiple ants to feed.

To facilitate the ease and safety with which ants can access the bait,and also to ensure easy flow of the bait from the well 12 to thereservoirs 30 and 32, the angular slope of the outflow front wall 22 ofthe primary bait well 12, from the bottom surface 44 of the bait well tothe top of the outflow front wall 22 of the well, which is also theupper edge of the lower half 13 corresponding with the flange 74, isbetween about 30° and about 60°, with angles closer to about 30° beingpreferred.

The ant feeding reservoirs 14 also have angled side walls 50 (see FIGS.10 and 11 ), with the side walls being those walls that extend in agenerally upstream-downstream direction between the inlet back wall 34,38 and the outlet front wall 36, 40 of the reservoir pair 30, 32,respectively. The slope of the feeding reservoir side walls 50 is steepenough to retain the desired amount of liquid bait and yet gentle enoughto enable ants to climb down the walls and access the bait, and thenturn and climb back up and out of the pack, without falling into orbeing mired in the liquid held in the reservoirs and drowning.Preferably, the angle of each of the reservoir side walls 50 is betweenabout 45° and about 75°, with angles closer to 75° being preferred.

To better enable the ants to gather and, when bait levels aresufficiently high, as when the bait pack is newly opened and thereforefull, to even access the liquid bait without having to climb down intothe reservoirs or the primary well, the ant bait pack according to thepreferred embodiment shown herein includes a plurality of dry platformareas 75 between the reservoirs. The width of the platform areas 75 isbetween about 3.6 mm (0.143″) and about 9.5 mm) (0.375°). The reservoirsare laterally separated from one another by these dry platform areas 75and may also be surrounded thereby (not shown).

According to the embodiment shown herein, the angle of the downstreamfront wall 36, 40 of each of the reservoir pairs 30, 32, respectively,is between about 30° to about 70° from the bottom surface 54 of thereservoirs to the top of the front wall 36, 40. The angle of theupstream or inlet back wall 34, 38 of each of the reservoir pairs 30,32, respectively, is also between about 30° and about 70°. Preferably,the angles of both the front and back walls of the reservoirs are closerto about 70°.

The side walls 48 of both the upstream and downstream portions 18 a, 18b of the channels are also angled (see FIGS. 11 and 12 ). The angle ofthe side walls 48 of the channel upstream portions 18 a, which channelportions 18 a extend in a generally upstream-downstream directionbetween the primary bait well 12 and the first pair of ant feedingreservoirs 30, is between about 50° and about 70°, and preferably about60°. The angle of the channel downstream portions 18 b which extendsfrom the first or upstream pair of ant feeding reservoirs 30 to thesecond or downstream pair of ant feeding reservoirs 32 is also betweenabout 50° and about 70°, and preferably about 60°.

The front of the bait pack with the tab 16 is provided with an entrancecavity generally designated by reference numeral 60. The cavity 60 has aflattened bottom portion 62 and a ramp 64 that provides a passagebetween the entrance cavity and the downstream pair of reservoirs 32.The front entrance cavity 60 has a scored line 66 for removing thetear-off tab 16. Removal of the tear-off tab 16 creates an accessopening 90 (see FIG. 5 ) that opens the entrance cavity 60 to allow theinsects to crawl into the bait pack and up the ramp 64 to attain accessto the liquid bait contained in the downstream pair of reservoirs 32.The ants may continue crawling toward the back end of the bait pack tothe upstream pair of reservoirs 30, and then to the bait well 12 at therear or back end of the bait pack, as previously explained.

The bait pack is made with a moldable polymer such a polyethylene,propylene, or any other polymer that is preferably a transparent film toallow ready viewing by the user so that he/she can see when the liquidbait previously deposited therein has become depleted, or filled withdead insects, and requires replacement.

The upper half 11 of the bait pack 10 is preferably formed with aslightly elevated central portion 70 (see FIGS. 3-5 ), to add someclearance within the bait pack during its usage.

The flanges 72, 74 around the perimeters of each of the upper and lowerhalves 11, 13, are joined (see FIG. 4 ), such as by heat sealing, orother adhesive, during manufacture of the bait pack in a manner likethat described in the ′696 patent.

When the bait pack is ready for use, the consumer simply positions thebait pack so that the back end is arranged downwardly, ensuring that allof the liquid sealed therein will flow to the primary bait well at theback of the bait pack. Then, as shown in FIG. 13 , the consumer tearsoff the tab 16 along the score 66 so as to create the access opening 90to the otherwise previously sealed container. The tab may be readilytorn off by hand without the need for any tools or cutting devices. Thebait pack may then be rested on a level surface, preferably at alocation that is inaccessible to children, pets, or the like, but yetreadily available to the insects desired to be eradicated. At this time,when arranged horizontally, with its lower half resting upon the floorwith the bottoms of the reservoirs and the primary well on the sameplane, the liquid will flow or be distributed, as previously explained,between the primary well, and the first and second pairs of reservoirsto reach equilibrium where the bait then remains static. Having theliquid bait in all of the reservoirs and in the well, while providingthe dry platform areas in between the reservoirs, makes it possible forthe greatest number of eating areas to be readily accessible to ants andother insects. The insects ingest the bait and either die in situ, orcarry the poisonous bait back to the colony, so as to spread theinsecticide or pesticide to the other members of the colony, and causetheir demise. Once the bait has been totally consumed or becomessufficiently stale as to lose its attraction to the insects, the baitpack can be discarded with all the dead insects contained therein.

The bait pack as described herein may be used with any of a number ofliquid baits readily available upon the market. These baits may includethose liquid baits that have a viscosity close to that of water as wellas baits having a higher viscosity.

Variations or modifications to the subject matter of this invention mayoccur to those skilled in the art upon reviewing the description of thisinvention. Such variations, if within the scope and spirit of thisinvention, are intended to be encompassed within the scope of any claimsto invention made herein. The description of the preferred embodiment,as shown in the drawings, are set forth for illustrative purposes only.

What is claimed is:
 1. An ant bait pack comprising: a container forliquid ant bait; a removable tab at a front end of said container; aprimary bait well disposed at a bottom portion of said container; afirst pair of reservoirs located adjacent to the bait well; a secondpair of reservoirs positioned between the first pair of reservoirs andthe tab; each of said reservoirs in said first pair being in liquid flowcommunications with said bait well via a respective upstream channel andalso being in liquid flow communication with a respective one of saidreservoirs in said second pair via a respective downstream channel; anda dry platform separating a portion of the reservoirs from one another.2. The ant bait pack as set forth in claim 1, wherein each of saidreservoirs in both pairs of reservoirs is generally rectangular and hasa front wall and a rear wall joined by two side walls, said front walland said rear wall being angled at about 70°, each of said reservoirside walls being angled at about 75°.
 3. The ant bait pack as set forthin claim 2, wherein said upstream channels and said downstream channelseach have side walls angled at about 60°.
 4. The ant bait pack as setforth in claim 1, wherein said bait well is generally rectangular with aclosed rear wall, two side walls and an outflow front wall opposite saidrear wall, said outflow front wall being sloped at an angle of betweenabout 30° and about 60° to facilitate ant entry and exit from the baitwell and the bait contained therein.
 5. The ant bait pack as set forthin claim 4, wherein each of said reservoirs is generally rectangular andhas a front wall and a rear wall joined by two side walls, said frontwall and said rear wall being angled at about 70° from the bottomsurface of the reservoirs to a top of the respective front or rear wall.6. The ant bait pack as set forth in claim 5, wherein each of saidreservoir side walls is angled at about 75°.
 7. The ant bait pack as setforth in claim 6, wherein said channels have side walls angled at about60°.
 8. The ant bait pack as set forth in claim 1, wherein the dryplatform has a generally flat surface.
 9. The ant bait pack as set forthin claim 8, wherein the dry platform is located above a liquid baitlevel.